Rail head and wheel flange lubricator



Dec. 28, 1937. c. STERN 2,103,701

RAIL HEAD AND WHEEL FLANGE LUBRICATOR haras 5 fZLerw,

Dec. 28, 1937.- c. STERN 2,103,701.

RAIL HEAD AND WHEEL FLANGE kLUBRICTOR Filed July 1o, 1934 2 sheets-smelt 2 Mmm.

I Charles lb""ern y Patentedv Dec. Z8, 1937 UNITED STATES RAIL HEAD AND WHEEL FLANGE f LUBRICATOR lCharles Stern, Jersey City, N. J., assigner to Ardco Manufacturing Company,

Hoboken,

N. J., a corporation of Delaware 1 Application July 10, 1934, Serial No. 734,553

Claims.

The present invention relates to a lubricating device for the side of a rail head and the flanges of wheels passing over the rail to supply the 1ubricant at spaced points along the side of the railhead in position to be picked up by the wheel flanges 'and spread along the rail beyond the lubricator. f

An object of the present invention is to provide Valubricator of this type wherein danger of leakage` is lavoided between clamped together plates and yparts which are susceptible of separation or relative movement incident to the weaving of the rail as the Wheels pass thereover, and which at the vsame time deposits the lubricant in 3 desired quantities along the side of the rail'head at a height such that the lubricantv will be wiped ofi by and carried upon the flanges of the wheels and subsequently deposited and spread along the side of the rail head as the wheels roll thereover. Another object of the present invention is to provide a lubricant distributor which may be secured 4at the desired height and distance from the side of a rail and which has secured directly thereon and carried thereby distributing elements, such as tubes or the like, which extend upwardly and which may be adjusted with the distributor to dispose the outer ends o-f the elements at the desired height against the side of therail, the distributor and the distributing elements serving as practically a vone-piece structure which eliminates danger of leakage of the lubricant as it passes through the distributor and the elements. l

Another Vobject of the invention is to pro- Avide the lubricator with a protecting member which is mounted on the distributor and may be adjusted with reference to the rail so as to extend over the distributing members or tubes to protect them from direct contact with the wheel flanges and at the same time which will free the upper open ends of the elements so that the lubricant may be fed upwardly therethrough and against the side of the rail without interruption.

The invention also embodies a novel construction of distributor manifold with distributing tubes thereon and a protecting plate or member which is adjustably mounted on the manifold with reference to the rail head, the two parts Jeing aranged so that the attachment of the manifold to the side of the rail holds the protecting member in place.

With the foregoing and other' objects in' view, the invention will be morev fully described hereinafter, and will be more particularly pointed out in the claims appended hereto.

In the drawings, wherein like symbols refer to like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, v

Figure 1 is a side elevation of a rail head'and wheel flange lubricator constructed according to the present invention and as applied to a section of a rail. I

Figure 2 is a longitudinal central section taken vertically through the lubricator. n

Figure 3 is a transverse section taken through one end of the lubricator on the line 3-3 of Figure 1 and the adjacent portion ofthe rail, showing the means for clamping the lubricator at dif- 8-8 of Figure 9 through the upper portion of the rail and a modified form of the lubricating device applied thereto, and

Figure 9 is a transverse section taken on the line 9--9 through Figure 8 showing the mounting of the protecting member adjustably on the manifold. l

Referring now to the drawings, I5 designates the base of a rail of conventional form having theusualweb I6 and rail head I1. VThe lubricator comprises a distributor which is in the form of a manifold I8 which may be rectangularin cross section as shown to provide an upper flat face and to also provide an inner at face adapted for contact with the web IB of the rail, shims, washers or other devices being employed where it is desired to space the manifold I8 outwardly from the web. The manifold I8 is provided with a threaded nipple I9 located preferably intermediate the ends of the manifold and by means of which a pipe or other suitable source of lubricant supply under pressure may be'connected to the manifold for forcing the lubricant therethrough. vThe manifold I8 is provided with lugs 2l) at opposite ends which, as shown in Figure 2, are provided with vertically elongated slots 2| through which clamping bolts 22 engage, the bolts 22 passing through Vthe web I6 and the slots 2| so that the manifoldv I8 ymay be raised and ylowered against the side of the web I6 to meet various conditions found in installation. The bolts 22 are provided with the usual nuts and washers for effecting the desired clamping action. In order to hold the manifold I8 in its vertically adjusted position, the manifold is provided at suitable points in its length with outwardly and downwardly inclined lugs 23 through which set screws 24 are threaded, the set screws extending downwardly from the lugs and adapted to bear against the adjacent side of the rail base I5.

These set screws 24 not only hold the manifold I8 in its raised position, but also brace the manifold I8 against torsional strain which may be imposed thereon incident to the wiping of the wheel flanges over the upper portion of the lubricator.

The manifold I8 extends outwardly from the rail a considerable distance to providea relatively broad flat upper face and also to provide ample space within the manifold for receiving a desired quantity of lubricant as the manifold vI8 is of considerably less height than that of the rail web I8 to accommodate the other features of the lubricator. The manifold I8 carries at its upper side a plurality of upwardly extending spaced apart distributing members or tubes 25 which, as shown in Figure 7, are preferably provided with threaded plugs 26 upon their lower ends and the plugs are detachably threaded in suitably formed openings in the upper wall of the manifold i8, the lubricant passing from the interior of the manifold upwardly through the plugs 28 and tubes 25. The upper ends of the tubes 25 terminate at a suitable height to lie against the adjacent side of the rail head I1 and are preferably beveled at their free open ends as at 21 to deliver the lubricant in gobs at'the top of the tube and toward the rail flange so that the latter may pass over the end of the tube without crushing the same and pick up the gob of lubricant to carry the latter forwardly with the wheel ange.

By adjusting the manifold I8 vertically against the side of the rail web I6, the upper open ends 21 of the tubes 25 may be disposed at the desired height along the side of the rail head, and to protect the tubes 25 against crushing or damage by contact with the wheel flanges, a protector 28 is provided which is in the form of an upstanding plate suitably beveled at its upper end to coincide substantially to that of the beveled upper ends 21 of the tubes and which is supported directly upon the upper face of the manifold I 8. The lower end of the protector plate I8 has a base ange 29 provided with a fiat lower surface adapted to seat on the upper surface of the manifold and to slide thereon within certain limits toward and from the web I6 of the rail to thus accommodate the protector plate 28 to the position of the distributor tubes 28. It is apparent that by relative adjustments between the clamping bolts 22 and the set screws 24 the manifold I8 may be slightly tilted or otherwise adjusted to accommodate the upper ends of the tubes 25 to the inclination of the side of the rail head. The base flange 29 is provided with a plurality of relatively large openings 3Q adapted to receive the tubes 25 upwardly therethrough, and the inner side of the protecting plate 28 may have recesses 3| of ,suitable size tofreely receive the upper portions of the tubes 25 therein, the recess 3l terminating at their upper ends in the beveled outer face of the plate 28 so as to lie substantially flush with the upper ends of the tubes 25. K

The manifold I8 has along its upper outer edge a clamping fiange or shoulder 32 adapted to bear against the outer side of the plate 28 opposite the base ange 29 so that as the manifold I8 is forced inwardly toward the rail web I6 the base flange 29 will be clamped against the side of the rail to hold the protector plate 28 rigidly in position. To take care of different adjustments of the parts, and insure the binding of the base flange 29 between the web of the rail and the flange 32 of the manifold, the base flange 28 is provided at suitable spaced points with through openings 33 threaded at their inner ends to receive set screws 34 adapted to be turned up against the adjacent side of the web I 6 ofthe rail. The heads of the set screws 34 are disposed in countersinks at the outer ends of the openings 33 and the binding flangevSZ is provided with relatively large openings 35 in register with the openings 33 to admit easy'access of a screw driver or other suitable tool to the heads of the set screws 32 for adjusting the same. It is apparent that the set screws 34 force the base flange 29 backwardly from the web I of the rail and against the stop shoulder or ange 32.

It will be noted that the lubricant which is :forced through the manifold i8 passes throughv the rigidly connected tubes 25 and to the various points of distribution without passing through any points which depend upon the clamping together of plates or the like, or the use of gaskets which readily become loosened and broken incident to the weaving action of the rail.

In the modification shown in Figures 8 and 9, the manifold 35 is substantially of the same construction as shown in the preferred form with the exception that the upper surface ofthe manifold is relatively brought so as to stand out a considerable distance from the web I6 of the rail and the manifold 35 is provided with a short stop shoulder 38 along the outer edge of the upper surface of the manifold. The protector plate 31 is substantially of the same construction as the plate 28 but the base flange 38 is in the form of a T-head which projects both inwardly and outwardly of the lower portion of the plate 31. This provides a relatively wide support for the plate 31 to hold it from tilting, and the outer portion of the base flange 38 is provided with spaced transverse slots 39 through which engage set screws 4U threaded into the upper wall of the manifold and which bind against the upper surface of the base flange to hold the latter in adjusted position with reference to the rail webv I6. Thus, the protector plate 31 may be adjusted toward and from the side of the rail head I1 by loosening the set screws 43 and may be held in adjusted position by tightening the screws after adjustment.

It will be noted particularly from Figure 2 that the plugs 26 of the tubes or nozzles 25 are of sufficient size to be secured downwardly through the upper wall of the manifold so that the tubes themselves may be withdrawn downwardly one at' a time through the manifold for replacement and also may be inserted upwardly through themanifold in assembling the nozzles thereon.

To facilitate this relatively large plugs 4I are threaded into the bottom wall of the manifold I8 in line with the plugs 2B so that the tubes 25 may be withdrawn downwardly through the entire manifold and the assembling of the parts may take place by a reverse operation. Plugs 42 are deposited in the opposite ends of the manifold I8 and may be readily removed when it is desired to cleanse the manifold, and also for the purpose of facilitating manufacture and working on the various parts.

It is obvious that various changes and modications may be made in the details of construction and design of the above specifically described embodiment of this invention without departing from the spirit thereof, such changes and modiiications being restricted only by the scope of the following claims.

What is claimed is:-

1. A rail head and wheel flange lubricator, comprising a manifold adapted to receive lubricant under pressure, means for detachably securing the manifold to one side of a rail, a plurality of independent tubes detachably branched from the manifold and having flattened outer ends for positioning against the side of a rail head to project into the bight between the rail head and the ange of a wheel, a removable protecting member, and detachably securing means for securing the protecting member on the manifold over the tubes and having a reduced upper end portion projecting into said bight to protect the free ends of the tubes.

2. A rail head and wheel flange lubricator,

comprising a .distributor for lubricant, meansy for detachably securing the distributor against the side of a rail and having a plurality of nozzles extending upwardly for positioning at the side of the rail head to deliver lubricant thereto, and a protector detachably interlocked upon the upper side of the distributor and adapted to be held in place across the nozzles when the distributor is in position to protect the nozzles against crushing by the flanges of Wheels passing over the rail. Y

3. A rail head and wheel flange lubricator, comprising a manifoldv having a plurality of upwardly extending tubes, means for lsecuring the manifold against the side of a rail with the open ends of the tubes adjacent the side of the head of the rail, and a protector member mounted Y upon the upper side of the manifold across the outer sides of the tubes and adapted tobe held in position by the manifold when in place.

4. A rail head and wheel flange lubricator comprising a distributing manifold having a plurality of delivery nozzles extending upwardly therefrom, means for vertically adjusting the manifold against the side of a rail to position the upper ends of the nozzles against the side of the rail head, clamping means for the manifold to secure the same in position against-the side of the rail, and a protector detachably interlocked with the upper portion of the manifold and engaging across the outer sides of the tubes for protecting the same when the manifold is clamped in position.

5..AV rail head and Wheel flange lubricator, comprisinga manifold having a flat upper surface and a flat inner surface, means for adjustably holding the manifold at the desired height against the web of a rail, a plurality of nozzles carried by the manifold and extending upwardly for engagement against the side of a 'rail head, and a protector member having a base portion adjustably mounted upon the upper fiat face of the manifold and having a plate 1 portion for engagement across the outer sides of the tubes for protecting the same and held in position by said manifold.

6. A rail head and wheel ange lubricator, comprising a manifold having a flat upper surface, means for vertically adjusting the manifold against the side of the web of a rail, means for clamping the manifold to the web when adjusted, a plurality of tubes carrled by the manifold and extending upwardly therefrom for engagement against the side of the head of the rail, and a protector mounted upon the upper face of the manifold for clamping engagement between the manifold and the rail Web to hold the protecting member across the outer sides of the tubes to prevent crushing thereof by Wheel flanges.

7. A rail head and wheel flange lubricator,

comprising a manifold having a plurality of up-v wardly extending nozzles, means for vertically adjusting the manifold against the side of a rail to dispose the open ends of the nozzles at the desired height at the side of a rail head, said manifold having an upper flat face and a binding flange at the outer edge thereof, and a protecting member seated on said flat face of the manifold between said flange and the web of the rail and having a plate portion engaging across the outer sides of the tubes, said protector member adapted to be clamped in position between the web and the said flange when the manifold is clamped to the rail web.

8. A rail head and wheelflange lubricator, comprising a manifold having a flat upper face with a binding flange at the outer edge of said face and provided'with a plurality of tubes extending upwardly from said flat face, means for adjustably securing the manifold against the side of a rail web to dispose the open ends of the tubes at the side of the head of the rail, and a protector having a base portion seated on said flat face of the manifold behind -said flange and adapted to be found in position upon securing the manifold tothe rail web for holding the protecting `member across the outer sides of the tubes to protect the same.

9. A rail head and wheel ange lubricator, comprising a manifold having a flat upper face and provided with a plurality of tubes rising from -said at upper face, a removable protecting member mounted on said flat face of the manifold across the outer sides of the tubes for protecting thesame, and means for clamping the manifold to the side of a rail web to hold the manifold with its tubes and the protecting member in position.

10. A rail head and wheel flange lubricator comprising a manifold, a plurality of tubes detachably connected to the manifold and extending upwardly therefrom, means for adjustably supporting the manifold at one side of a rail to position the open ends of the tubes at the side of the rail head, and a protecting member interlocked upon the upper side of the manifold about said tubes and extending across the outer sides thereof when the manifold isin position to protect the tubes. Y

Y CHARLES STERN. 

